A Finding Aid to the

Kivie Kaplan Papers

Manuscript
Collection No. 26

1948-1975. 7.6 Linear
ft.

ACCESS AND PROVENANCE

The Kivie Kaplan Papers were donated by Kivie Kaplan and were
delivered to the Archives in segments throughout the years 1966-1975.
Kaplan assigned the property rights to the American Jewish Archives.
Literary rights to the materials authored by Kivie Kaplan belong to
the Kaplan heirs. Literary rights to material authored by others are
held by the individuals or his/her heirs. Questions about literary
or copyrights should be addressed to the Director of the Archives.

The Kaplan Papers are open to all users and available in the reading
room of the American Jewish Archives.

Kivie Kaplan was born on April 1, 1904 in Boston,
Massachusetts. He was the youngest of three sons of Benjamin and
Celia (Solomont) Kaplan. He attended English High School and
Bryant and Stratton School in Boston. In 1924, Kivie Kaplan and
his brothers, Joseph and Archie, took over their father's leather
businesses. The businesses run by the Kaplans were models of
management-labor cooperation. The employees participated in a
profit-sharing program which paid out several million dollars
over the years. Suggestions from employees were encouraged and
rewarded. Everyone in the plants, including the executives, ate
in the same dining room and was provided free lunches. Kaplan
successfully helped run the tanneries until 1962 when he retired
to devote all of his time to philanthropic work.

He had joined the N.A.A.C.P. in 1932 and was elected to the
National Board in 1954. He was also the National Chairman of the
N.A.A.C.P. Life Membership Committee and active on life
memberships dramatically increased from a few hundred to several
hundred thousand. In 1966, he was elected as President of the
N.A.A.C.P. and held that post until his death. As President of
the N.A.A.C.P., Kaplan actively worked to make the organization
successful. He spoke throughout the United States on its behalf
and sought financial contributions wherever he could. Kaplan was
trustee of two black colleges: Lincoln University in Pennsylvania
and Tougaloo College in Mississippi.

Kivie Kaplan was also involved in Jewish affairs and was a
member of the Board of Trustees of the Union of American Hebrew
Congregations (U.A.H.C.). He was a member of the U.A.H.C.'s
Executive Committee as well as its Social Action Commission. He
contributed large sums of money to the Jewish Memorial Hospital
in Boston and Brandeis University. The Religious Action Center
of U.A.H.C. in Washington, DC was built with money donated by
Kaplan and his wife, Emily.

Kaplan received numerous awards and honorary degrees. Among
these were the Amistad Award of the American Missionary
Association, the Men of Vision Award from the Bonds for Israel
Committee, and honorary degrees from Wilberforce University,
Wilberforce, Ohio, Hebrew Union College, and Lincoln University
in Pennsylvania.

In 1925, Kivie Kaplan married Emily Rogers. They had three
children, Sylvia (Grossman), Jean (Green), and Edward. Kivie
Kaplan died on May 5, 1975.

The Kivie Kaplan Papers cover his activities in business,
the N.A.A.C.P., and many Jewish organizations. The collection
includes correspondence, memoranda, press releases, photographs,
news clippings, nearprint and miscellaneous material. The
collection spans the period 1948-1975 with the bulk of the
material covering the years 1966-1975. The Kaplan Papers
are divided into six series:

A. CORRESPONDENCE

B. JEWISH ORGANIZATIONS AND ACTIVITIES

C. N.A.A.C.P.

D. ICONOGRAPHIC MATERIAL

E. NEWS CLIPPINGS

F. MISCELLANEOUS

The CORRESPONDENCE series consists of fifteen boxes covering
the years 1962-1975. The Series is divided into two subseries:
General and Personal. The General correspondence is arranged
alphabetically by the name of the correspondent. Some notable
correspondents are Roy Wilkins and Edward B. Muse of the
N.A.A.C.P. and Alexander Schindler of the Union of American
Hebrew Congregations. The Personal correspondence has
correspondence from members of the Kaplan family arranged
alphabetically with the rest arranged chronologically.

The JEWISH ORGANIZATIONS AND ACTIVITIES series consists of
one and one-half boxes covering the years 1961-1975. There are
three subseries: The Union of American hebrew Congregations
subseries contains minutes, reports, memoranda, press releases
and miscellaneous material. The B'nai B'rith subseries contains
similar material as well as material from the Career and
Counseling Services and the Anti-Defamation League. The
Miscellaneous subseries consists of material from other Jewish
organizations such as the Council of Black and White Rabbis and
the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism.

The N.A.A.C.P. series consists of nineteen folders and is
divided into two subseries: General and Miscellaneous. The
General subseries is made up of minutes, memoranda, press
releases, committee reports and nearprint material. The
Miscellaneous subseries contains records of Tougaloo College and
appeals for aid from the N.A.A.C.P.

The ICONOGRAPHIC series consists of one and one-half boxes
and contains material covering all facets of Kivie Kaplan's life.
There are family portraits and pictures as well as photographs
relating to Kaplan's businesses, to Jewish organizations and to
he N.A.A.C.P.

The NEWS CLIPPINGS series consists of four folders and
contains clippings dealing with Kaplan's business affairs, with
Jewish organizations, the N.A.A.C.P., and miscellaneous items.

The MISCELLANEOUS series is made up of six folders and
contains awards and citations, biographical material and
nearprint material.